How Easy is it to Change Your Running Technique

Every runner knows the importance of running technique for performance and injury reduction. At some stage, most of us have worked to improve our technique; but do we really get any change and just how hard is it to make improvements.

The common discussion is about overstriding and 'I just need to shorten my stride', but running is not a conscious motor pattern. When being chased by that dangerous [insert animal or villain] you don't think about how to run, you just do it. It is something we learn when we are young and then becomes an embedded motor pattern after thousands of repetitions. So we might consciously shorten our stride but as soon as we stop focusing on this, we will revert back to our embedded, and well practiced technique. 

However, this also means that the newer you are to running, the more chance you have of being able to make adjusts to your technique. This is because your running motor pattern has not been repeated thousands on thousands of times and is thus not as deeply embedded..

We generally run a certain way for a reason. We might have excessive hip movement due to poor core and glute stability, or we may arch back because our hip flexors are tight (common for triathletes running off the bike). Therefore, it is not just about consciously changing technique, but also making adjustments to our underlying musculoskeletal system. 

The other aspect of this, is that maybe our less than ideal technique actual suits us best. If you have been running for years, then your body has most likely adapted to your technique and making changes to this technique may actually increase your risk of injury through loading up areas that are not accustomed to the strain. So while our technique may not be ideal, it may well be ideal for us, especially if we have been running for many years.

Lets look at things in a more positive light; if we are to make changes to our technique, how do we best go about it. Obviously we need some form of conscious awareness of what we are trying to achieve, but we also need to adjust our body from a musculoskeletal point of view so it will cope with the new technique and be more inclined to make the changes.

So, if changing your technique is your goal, I would suggest:

1. Identifying your weak and tight areas and working on these. This is best done through video analysis where slow motion video will allow the determination of how your technique might be improved. This can then be addressed through improving strength, stability and flexibility of certain areas.
2. Completing technique sessions which are focused on consciously making change to technique. As stated above this is extremely difficult and therefore the best approach to this is using a high number of short repetitions where you can focus on what you are trying to achieve, then rest and recover before the next rehearsal. 
3. Running at speed. Many professionals working in this area believe that running at speed forces the body to maintain good technique. However, one thing is for sure, big volumes of long slow distance work do not assist with technique change. Fatigue results in the recruitment of a tried and try motor pattern. 

So improvement in running technique can take place, but remember that to 'set' any motor pattern in your brain takes thousands of repetitions. And each time you use that old technique, the learning process is delayed. This is the difficulty of changing your technique which still training hard. 

Comments

[Corey Hinde]

Thanks Ben. I'm very interested in using more technique drills both for myself and runners that I coach. The running squads I've been around all seem to use the same few drills for improving technique, regardless of the runners individual situation. What drills do you use, or what resources do you refer to for running drills that might be useful for your readers?

[Ben Wisbey]

Corey, a good question and not an easy one to answer in words. In summary, I think there are two main benefits to drills:
1. Technique improvement
2. Improved range of motion as part of the warm-up

For the warm-up, the drills need be just generic to get the runner moving and increasing range of motion, but for technique improvements they need to be tailored to the runners needs depending on what improvements are required. My belief is that the runner firstly needs to work on improving underlying stability before then trying to apply this to their running through drills. So the drills are used as a progression.

Not sure this answers your questions, but I will add it to my future list of blogs to try and do a drills video.

Thanks for your comment.